iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 11/06/2026

Science mystery! Nearly everyone, everywhere, veers left when walking. Why??? www.nytimes.com/2026/06/10/s... @nytimes.com

nytimes.com

Nearly Everyone, Everywhere, Veers Left When Walking

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

We've been in a long-term relationship with pigeons for at least 3,400 years. We brought them around the world to serve us and be our companions - only to recently turn on them. The least we owe them is a little respect. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/20/s...

nytimes.com

Pigeons and People Have Been Frenemies for Longer Than You Think

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

No truly effective treatments exist for cocaine addiction, and use of the drug is going up worldwide. Psilocybin therapy could offer a safe and effective solution for those looking to quit cocaine, according to the results of a first-of-its-kind trial. www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

Magic mushroom compound shows promise against cocaine addiction

Small study that prioritized Black and low-income participants yields “remarkable” results

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

Engineered microbes could help us clean up the planetary messes we've made, by degrading pollutants and recovering useful materials from waste. But realizing the powers of these technologies will require political will. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

Are microbes the future of pollution clean-up?

Synthetic biologists are engineering bacteria to feast on oil, plastic and toxic chemicals.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Tobacco is one of the toughest drugs to quit, but psilocybin shows promise for helping people kick the habit. In the latest study, a single dose combined with talk therapy allowed half of participants to give up smoking. www.bbc.com/future/artic...

bbc.com

Magic mushrooms could help people quit smoking

Nicotine is highly addictive, but new research is showing that psychedelics can shift people's worldview in ways to help them give up cigarettes.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 28/04/2026

A better treatment for river blindness is available, but companies didn't pursue it because it's not profitable. Now, a non-profit pharma company has brought that new treatment all the way through regulatory approval without a commercial partner - a notable first. www.nature.com/articles/d44...

nature.com

A better treatment for river blindness is available, but its rollout is complicated

A novel financing model rescued moxidectin from abandonment. The path to getting the drug manufactured and distributed exposes deeper faultlines in global health systems

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 09/04/2026

Emperor penguins, those icons of the Antarctic, are now endangered. As are fur seals. The cause is climate change. @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/04/09/c...

nytimes.com

Emperor Penguins Are Now Endangered, a New Assessment Finds

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 07/04/2026

Japan's beautiful cherry blossom displays are fading as climate change takes hold. Trees in southern Japan are already failing to reach peak bloom, and experts predict Kyoto, Osaka and Tokyo will soon face the same problem. @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

As Japan warms, cherry blossom displays are fading

Some trees in southern Japan are already failing to reach peak bloom—a trend researchers predict will move north in the coming decades

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

A Bay Area brewery just launched the world's first air-to-beer approach to carbonation. If the business model works, it could give the broader carbon-capture industry a boost. @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/03/23/c...

nytimes.com

There’s a New Place to Store Greenhouse Gases: In Your Beer

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

Conservation conundrum in Madagascar: The strawberry guava - one of the world's worst invasive species - is taking over the island's forests, but endangered lemurs love to eat its fruit. @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/03/07/s...

nytimes.com

Lemurs Love This Fruit That Is Choking Madagascar’s Forests

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 04/03/2026

Could ancient Greek priestesses have created the mind-altering elixir thought to lie at the heart of one of antiquity’s most secretive cults, the Eleusinian Mysteries? Researchers recreated the hypothetical psychedelic brew to find out. @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

Did ancient Greek priestesses brew a mind-bending potion drunk by Cicero and Marcus Aurelius?

Researchers found the psychedelic elixir would have been possible to make using ingredients and techniques available in ancient Greece

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

"The bombardment betrays the lie." Thank you for this exposé of the wild world of book author scammers, @danbarry58.bsky.social. I'm going to start replying to my own new best friends' emails with a link to this story. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/25/b...

nytimes.com

Hungry for Affirmation, Vulnerable to Scams: As a Writer, I Know the Feeling

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

Around the world, plants are flowering earlier than they used to. Temperature alone doesn't explain it. Could crazy chemistry triggered by dewdrops be the real reason? @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

Could dewdrops explain why plants are flowering earlier?

Water droplets set off a chemical cascade that tells a plant it’s time to blossom, new study finds

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

Educators fear that disappearing public health jobs and backlash against the field could soon impact enrollment in programs training the next generation of experts who keep us safe and healthy. @thinkglobalhealth.org www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/publ...

thinkglobalhealth.org

Public Health Backlash Hurts Master's Program Enrollment | Think Global Health

New caps on student loans and federal job cuts could be steering some away from degrees in public health

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 30/01/2026

Socotra is an otherworldly tourism destination. But behind the stunning photos lie serious sustainability challenges, including with garbage. On a recent trip, I tried taking all my recyclables with me off the island. Things did not go as planned. www.afar.com/magazine/can...

afar.com

Can the "Galápagos of the Arabian Sea" Survive Its Popularity?

The UNESCO-listed island of Socotra faces an onslaught of sustainability challenges, from climate change to an Instagram-fueled tourism surge.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 28/01/2026

“We are losing the capabilities and infrastructure to prepare.” How the Trump administration’s gutting of the EPA endangers lung health for all Americans—just as air pollution is rising nationwide. @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

Funding cuts could put research into emerging threats to lung health at risk

Wildfire smoke, spore-spread fungal diseases and microplastic are all on the rise, even as the US government slashes support for respiratory research and policy.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 26/01/2026

One of the highlights of my vacation to Socotra - a Yemeni island with incredible biodiversity - was getting to meet a tree-loving local who helps protect endangered plants from nearly 500,000 free-ranging goats. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

Defending endangered trees against climate change and hungry goats

Mohammed Amar manages conservation of imperilled flora in Socotra, a Yemeni island known as the Galápagos of the Indian Ocean.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 22/01/2026

With most psychedelic drugs, you never know what you're going to get. But this mysterious mushroom from China - without fail - causes users to hallucinate tiny people: crawling up walls, popping out from under furniture and marching under doors. www.bbc.com/future/artic...

bbc.com

'They saw them on their dishes when eating': The mushroom making people hallucinate dozens of tiny humans

Only recently described by science, the mysterious mushrooms are found in different parts of the world, but they give people the same exact visions.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 08/01/2026

I chatted with NPR's Here & Now about my investigation into the Chinese and Taiwanese-run Buddhist orphanages that are grooming children in Africa to become wildlife traffickers. DM me for a link to the full Economist story. www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2...

wbur.org

How Chinese criminals are grooming orphans into Africa's illegal wildlife trade

Chinese wildlife traffickers are recruiting orphans from Malawi into their network of illegal ivory trading.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 12/12/2025

Psychedelic drugs are known for their ability to reveal sides of the self that previously lay hidden. For some people, this can lead to a change in sexual orientation or gender identity. www.bbc.com/future/artic...

bbc.com

'Beyond gender': Psychedelics are revealing hidden sides to people's identity

There is growing evidence that mind-altering drugs can be used to help people explore aspects about themselves they may not have realised.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 14/11/2025

Mixing is a fundamental process that functions like a heartbeat for lakes. But at iconic lakes around the world, climate change is slowing or even stopping that heartbeat - causing profound impacts to these very special ecosystems. @quantamagazine.bsky.social www.quantamagazine.org/mixing-is-th...

quantamagazine.org

Mixing Is the Heartbeat of Deep Lakes. At Crater Lake, It’s Slowing Down. | Quanta Magazine

The physics of mixing water layers — an interplay of wind, climate and more — makes lakes work. When it stops, impacts can ripple across an ecosystem.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 13/11/2025

Should aging be considered a disease? Some scientists argue that this would accelerate anti-aging research; others say it makes no biological sense and would be fraught with ethical implications @nature.com www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

Is ageing a disease? The debate that could reshape medicine

Classifying ageing as a disease might bring funding and other benefits, say some researchers, but others say this is fraught with ethical and regulatory implications.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 31/10/2025

It's hard enough to get people interested in reading these days, but this is a new low. A book club wants to feature my book - but only if I "tip" each reader $15-30 "to recognize [their] effort." Is this a thing now??

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

After 263 African elephants were moved from one national park to another, the animals began wandering out - destroying property and killing people. My latest for @biographic.bsky.social, on the complexities of conservation in an increasingly crowded continent. www.biographic.com/the-wild-ele...

biographic.com

The Wild Elephant in the Room

Conservationists seeking to restore elephant populations in a Malawian national park inadvertently upended human lives, revealing the risks of large-mammal translocations.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 20/10/2025

Psychedelic mushrooms evolved their magic twice, in two distantly related groups of species. What's more, those mushrooms take radically different biochemical routes to producing psilocybin. www.nytimes.com/2025/10/18/s...

nytimes.com

How Psychedelic Mushrooms Evolved Their Magic

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 17/10/2025

A Taiwanese- and Chinese-run Buddhist orphanage in Malawi is recruiting vulnerable children into the illegal wildlife trade. Behind it all is a Chinese ivory kingpin who Malawian officials are about to release early from prison. @economist.com www.economist.com/1843/2025/10...

economist.com

The school for wildlife traffickers

Chinese criminals are recruiting Malawian orphans into the ivory trade

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 31/07/2025

"If this wall and a few others are built, he said, “there will be no jaguars in the U.S. soon.”"

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 29/07/2025

We should all just make the switch to pet rabbits. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/29/c...

nytimes.com

We Love Our Dogs and Cats. But Are They Bad for the Environment?

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 10/07/2025

The Sonoran Desert toad secretes a powerful psychedelic drug as a defensive mechanism. Now, people are pushing the species toward extinction in the name of healing and consciousness expansion. www.nytimes.com/2025/07/10/c...

nytimes.com

These Toads Have Psychedelic Powers, but They’d Prefer to Keep It Quiet

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

In infants, a healthy gut microbiome is key for developing a healthy immune system. But in the U.S., 75% of babies are deficient in critical types of bacteria, and these babies are more likely to development of asthma, allergies and eczema as toddlers. bit.ly/4lK1Mmd

bit.ly

Most U.S. Babies Are Missing These Essential Gut Bacteria. Here’s What That Means for Their Health

Babies lacking in key gut bacteria are at greater risk of developing asthma, allergies or eczema

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 03/07/2025

Cuts to science funding by the Trump administration are set to negatively affect all Americans. One group most impacted, though, are science students and early-career researchers who are being robbed of their future. @sciam.bsky.social www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-...

scientificamerican.com

Early-Career Researchers Reflect on the Emotional and Societal Fallout of Trump’s Funding Cuts

Canceled grants and slashed budgets are disproportionately affecting junior health researchers, dealing a major blow to the future of science and society in the U.S.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 01/07/2025

The Senate's new bill would cut $1 trillion from Medicaid, causing 10+ million people to lose insurance. Cancer patients are one group set to suffer (and needlessly die) the most. 1 in 10 adults and 1 in 3 children with cancer depend on Medicaid. www.thinkglobalhealth.org/article/canc...

thinkglobalhealth.org

Cancer Patients and the Medicaid Cuts in "One Big Beautiful Bill" | Think Global Health

Under the GOP megabill, millions could lose access to potentially life-saving cancer screenings, treatments, and care

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 25/06/2025

Eagles are sacred to Native Americans. But poaching and trafficking of eagle feathers is on the rise, thanks to the powwow industry & the increasing popularity of peyote ceremonies. In Oklahoma, two fiery Comanches are trying to do something about it. @audubon.org www.audubon.org/magazine/nat...

audubon.org

This Native-Run Raptor Center Is Safeguarding Sacred Birds, Feathers, and Practices

A Comanche-led conservation project takes on an increasingly urgent mission: protecting the birds revered by many tribes while preserving traditions at the heart of their culture.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 18/06/2025

Source help request: I'm hoping to interview a cancer patient insured by Medicaid, who now faces risk of their treatment not being covered thanks to Republicans' proposed Medicaid work requirements. Please DM or email me at rachelnuwer@gmail with leads.

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 06/06/2025

Shorn horns - not guns - is the most effective way to protect rhinos from poachers. www.nytimes.com/2025/06/05/c...

nytimes.com

There’s an Effective Way to Deter Rhino Poachers, a New Study Finds

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 03/06/2025

“I think we will build a sustainable future,” Wagner says. “But it’s going to take 30 or 40 years, and by then, it’s going to be too late for a lot of the creatures that I love.”

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 21/05/2025

Continuing the birds-are-awesome theme: Hummingbirds in California have evolved new beak shapes and massively expanded their range—thanks to feeders. They've basically become the equivalent of backyard pigeons! @science.org www.science.org/content/arti...

science.org

Bird feeders have caused a dramatic evolution of California hummingbirds

Beaks have grown longer and larger, and ranges have expanded to follow the feeders

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 13/05/2025

Human preference for smooshed, baby-like faces has produced pedigreed cats and dogs that are more similar to each other than to their wild relatives, and have such distorted skulls that they could not survive in nature. www.scientificamerican.com/article/bree...

scientificamerican.com

Breeding for ‘Cuteness’ Is Making Dogs and Cats Look More Alike

Pugs, Persian cats, and other smushed-face cats and dogs are more similar to one another than they are to the wild animals they evolved from

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Rachel Nuwer @rachelnuwer.bsky.social · 12/05/2025

Yet more evidence that birds are awesome: Flamingos harness the physics of fluid flow to create vortices that sweep up prey and funnel it directly into their mouths. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/12/s...

nytimes.com

Flamingos Summon Mini-Twisters to Suck Up Prey

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